Martin middleton wilson



( No Model.)

" M. M. WILSON.

GAME APPARATUS. I

No.-519,078. Patented May 1, 1894..

UNITED STATES PATENT Fries.

MARTIN MIDDLETON l/VILSON, OF LLANDUDNO, ENGLAND.

' GAME APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 519,078, dated May 1,1894.

- APPIiCMiOIl filed August 22, 1893. Serial No. 483,747. (No model.)

, To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, MARTIN MIDDLETON WILSON, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Llandudno, in the county of Carnarvon, Principality of Wales, Great Britain, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatuses, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an apparatus for use in games where a ball, a bat, and a hoop or frame are employed, the ball being passed through the aperture within the frame, in the play.

A game for which myimproved apparatus is especially adapted is described in my PatentvNo. 499,000 and in my pending application, Serial No. 467,039, filed March 21, 1893.

The present invention consists, partly in the construction of the double frame or hoop and partly in a simple and effective means for detel-mining visually, whether the ball in play has actually passed through the ring, hoop, or frame. An annunciator which appeals to the hearing alone is not reliable during the excitement of the game, in cases where a dispute arises, but a visual annunciator will be a silentbut indisputable witness of the passage of the ball through the frame.

The invention is best described by aid of the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows the apertured double frame and the annunciator. Fig. 2 is an enlarged transverse section, and Fig. 3 a rear elevation of the top of the frame, showing the manner in which the suspended annunciator wires are attached. Fig. at is a slightly modified form of the attachment for the suspended wires. Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the lower rail of the frame, showing the mounting of the lower annunciator wires. Fig. 6 shows an arrangement of the two sets of wires differing slightly from Fig. 1.

A and A represent respectively the feeders frame and the players frame; these are placed side by side and mounted on a post B which is set in the ground. In the players frame A, is situated the annunciator, which consists of a series of wires or slender rods, suspendedorarranged in the interiorof the frame, in such a position that some of them will cross the path of a ball in its passage through the hoop. The wires j, of the series are each forked at the top and looped, by a separate loop on each prong of the fork, on to staples or eyes K, (Figs. 2 and 3) driven into a strip or small bar of wood K mounted on the top of the rim of the players frame A. This forking'of the wires j will prevent the side swaythereof in a breeze. In conjunction with these suspended wires, slender rods j may be provided, mounted or set in relatively broad bases J, which rest on the bottom rim of the frame A; these bases hold the rods in an erect position. .It will be seen in Fig. 1 that the suspended wires do not reach quite half way down, and the slender rods, j, not quite half way up; but there is not sufficient space between the lower ends of the wires j and upper ends of the rods j, to allow a ball to pass without striking one or more of the wires or rods. The best form for the bottom rim of frame A is that of a groove (Fig. 5) the front flange, a, of which is higher than the back, so that the lead bases J are shielded against being struck by the ball, and are not liable to topple off if shaken.

It will be obvious that the wires or rods may be of any suitable length; the wires j could, for example, be arranged to alternate with the rods j, and each to reach nearly to the top or bottom of the frame A respectively, as seen in Fig. 6. By this arrangement ofthe annunciator, the ball, in its passage through v the hoop, is certain to displace one or more of the rods j, or to set the suspended wires j to SWlIlglllg'.

I much prefer the construction illustrated in Fig. 1 where short suspended wires are used in conjunction with short weighted rods or wires as this combination has important advantages; for example, where long suspended wires are used alone, they offer too much resistance to a ball striking them near the point of suspension, and where only long weighted rods are used they are top-heavy and are apt to be toppled over by the wind.

The rods j may be secured by supple leather thongs or chains (seen at L in Fig. 5) to prevent them from falling on to the ground.

It will be obvious that the wires j may be suspended in any suitable manner, the means of suspending them described above being, however, an arrangement which I have found will work very well in actual practice. The

form of fork, however, which I prefer is that shown in Fig. 4c, and the best material has been found to be tempered steel wire, tinned, or otherwise protected against rust. It will also be seen that suspended wires j reaching to nearly the bottom of the frame maybe used alone; the upright slender rods in weighted bases being, in that case, dispensed with altogether.

Having thus described my invention, I claim-- 1. In a game apparatus, the combination with a frame or hoop, of wiresj, having forked upper extremities, said extremities of each wire being loosely coupled to the rear face of the upper rim of the frame whereby the said wires are suspended across the opening in the frame, and the ball, substantially as set forth.

2. In a game apparatus, the combination with a frame or hoop provided with staples K, two for each wire, of the wires j, having their upper extremities loosely coupled each to two staples, as described, the said wires being suspended across the aperture through the frame.

3. In a game apparatus, the combination with aframe or hoop A, of an upper series of pendent wires suspended from the upper rim of the frame and extending part way only across the frame, and a lower series of tethered wires which project upward across the space below the upper pendent wires, substantially as set forth.

4. In a game apparatus, the combination with the frame A, of the rods j, having weighted bases, and chains or like flexible connectors by which the rods are attached to the lower rim of the frame, as set forth.

5. In a game apparatus, the combination with the frame A, having an elevated front flange on its lower rim, of the rods j, provided each with a flat bottomed weighted base J, and flexible connectors L, each secured at one end to a rod j, and at the other end to the rear side of the lower rim of the frame, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

MARTIN MIDDLETON WILSON.

Witnessesi H. BARBER,

Solan, Bangor. T. MILLWARD,

Ifis Clerk. 

